


The Hanged Man, the High Priestess, and the Magician

by banditess



Series: A Funny Thing Happened in the Afterlife [3]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: A Noctis Sandwich, Alcohol, Anal Sex, Ardyn Knows Too Much About Lucian Sex Rituals, Fluff and Smut, Hand Jobs, Light BDSM, Masturbation, Multi, OT3, Oral Sex, Polyamory, Post-Game(s), The Fluff is in Chapters One and Two, The Smut is in Chapter Three, Threesome - F/M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-02
Updated: 2017-07-02
Packaged: 2018-11-22 09:59:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11377863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/banditess/pseuds/banditess
Summary: Part of the Backseat Fishing AU, takes place AFTER the events of the fic -- but you don't really need to have read the entire AU to appreciate what's going on here.Noct and Luna find themselves in an odd situation -- it turns out they'rebothin love with Chancellor Izunia. What happens when they tell Ardyn? (You'll find the answer in the tags.)





	1. Four times Noctis didn’t notice he was catching feelings, and the time Luna realized that she had.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jaclynhyde](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaclynhyde/gifts).



> I am so happy to be able to share this one with you guys. I've been working on it since MARCH and it's finally finished. *weeps*
> 
> This takes place AFTER the events of the main plot of Backseat Fishing, which...as we all know...is currently (as of the post date of this fic) unfinished. So consider this a side-fic look into the non-fic-canon future. ;) I will get back to writing the main fic as soon as I can move the gigantic writer's block out of the way -- but I promise I haven't abandoned it!
> 
> Thanks to everyone who has been leaving comments and kudos on my works even though I haven't been active lately -- and to the folks who have been stopping by tumblr to say hi! You are all amazing and you make the FFXV fandom a very special place that I'm proud to be part of.
> 
> Now enjoy some OT3 fluff (and some porn) :) ♥

_I could be your lover_   
_And you could be my hope_   
_I could be the Hanged Man_   
_And you could be my rope_   
_We could leave behind_   
_A perfect piece of fiction_   
_I could be your drug_   
_And you’d be my addiction_

Ashbury Heights - "Hope"

\--------  


**I.**

  
Time moves strangely in the Afterlife, but Noct is pretty sure it’s been months since Ardyn first bumbled out of the shrubs and interrupted his fishing. He remembers how shocking it was seeing the Chancellor again, after he’d been so sure that Ardyn had been laid to rest for good. It can be hard to forgive and forget, especially when one’s former mortal enemy is involved, and at the time, he’d been prepared to fight Ardyn all over again. But now?  
  
Well...a lot has happened since Ardyn came back into their lives.  
  
Of course, they still argue, and they probably always will -- Ardyn will always be _mischievous_ , even if he’s no longer _malevolent_ \-- but more and more Noct finds that their quarrels are somehow _comforting_ to him. When they banter, a simmering fire builds in Noct’s gut. It spreads like the warmth from drinking good booze, from the tips of his ears down to his toes.  
  
They were halfway into a heated discussion on the pros and cons of using braided fishing line when Noctis finally realized: It’s the same feeling that sparring with Gladio used to give him...only _these_ bouts don’t leave him bruised and sore the following day.  
  
Noct argues more exuberantly after this epiphany, putting in an effort he's sure Ignis would have wished he’d applied to his chores back in the day. He swears that Ardyn has taken notice of his efforts, too; the Chancellor seems to make his rebuttals with a renewed interest now. Today’s topic of discussion: the appropriate lures to use for certain species of fish. Ardyn leans forward towards Noct as he makes his case for the best type to use for crag barramundi, a smug grin extending from ear to ear. Noctis sits back confidently and prepares to wipe the smile from Ardyn’s face.  
  
He could do this all day.

  
**II.  
  
** Noct is walking down the hall en route to the hearthroom one dark evening when he passes the guest bedroom Ardyn has been using. For some reason, his door is wide open. Inside, the Chancellor is facing the large bedroom window, his form illuminated by soft lamplight. Ardyn’s signature black coat and elaborate vests are _conspicuously_ absent. His shirt is not made of particularly thick fabric, and Noctis can see the sculpted curvature of his shoulderblades right through it. When Ardyn shifts his weight and puts his hands on his hips, Noct can _also_ see that his sleeves have been rolled up to his elbows, showing off _surprisingly_ muscular forearms.  
  
Clearly, Noct has seen men in various states of undress before, but this is... _different_. All at once, there's a tingling sensation rising at the base of his spine, and the feeling of some unseen force pulling from the center of his chest...  
  
He is yanked from his thoughts by the all-too familiar sound of Ardyn chuckling.  
  
“Like what you see, Your Majesty?” Ardyn teases, looking over his shoulder at the King, and Noctis becomes suddenly aware of the fact that he has stopped dead in his tracks in front of the Chancellor’s room.  
  
“I, uh...I was just…” He swallows. “Luna needs me?” His voice comes out much squeakier and much less confident than he intends, but it’s too late now, he’s gotta roll with it. He turns on his heel and strides off down the hall, his face hot as the Infernian’s blaze. He’s not sure, but he _thinks_ he can hear Ardyn laughing all the way from the bedroom.

**  
III.**

Noctis wakes up one morning to find that Ardyn has “borrowed” Umbra to go travelling alone in the Beyond.  
  
_This way you’ll know where I am at all times_ , reads the note Ardyn has left, the script elaborate and full of flourishes, just like the Chancellor himself:  
  
_Not that it truly matters, since it isn’t as though we are able to leave this plane of existence. Consider it an act of trust, so you can rest assured that I am not up to any funny business, as it were. I will return as soon as my errand is complete.  
  
__\-- Ardyn  
  
_ Noct rubs at the stubble on his chin and sighs. Is this what parenting a teenager is like? He silently apologizes to his father, wherever the remnants of his soul may be.  
  
He tries to go about his day normally, but his thoughts keep returning to Ardyn. Wondering where he’s gone. What he’s up to. What sort of _errand_ he could possibly be doing in the Afterlife.  
  
“Noctis?” Luna ventures.  
  
“Yeah?” he replies, pacing the room.  
  
“Pryna and I would like to suggest that perhaps you should...go take a walk?”  
  
“I _am_ walking,” he says, looking up at her, but continuing to pace.  
  
“Yes, well, you’ll walk a groove right into the floor at this rate,” Luna laughs. “We meant a _real_ walk. To be honest, darling, you’re making Pryna nervous.”  
  
He stops and looks down at the plush white dog. “I...I am?”  
  
Pryna whines softly at him, her ears lowered. Her tail wags slowly, cautiously.  
  
“Oh.” Noct squats down. “I’m sorry, girl -- I didn’t mean to make you upset. They’re okay, though, right? Ardyn and Umbra?”  
  
Pryna woofs quietly, reaching out her paw and placing it on Noct’s knee. Through her, Noctis can feel Umbra’s presence. He is calm, and doing just fine -- but wherever the two of them are, it’s cold.  
  
“Okay, okay. Thanks, Pryna. I’ll try to relax.” He reaches out and gives the pup a scratch behind the ears. He stands up and stretches, letting the blood flow back into his legs, then ambles out of the room, giving Luna a wink as he leaves. He’ll just have to find somewhere else to work off his nervous energy.

  
**III ½**

Ardyn returns some time later (Hours? A day? Who knows?), holding a cloth sack, brushing snow off of his coat. Umbra too has a thin dusting of snow on his fur; he shakes it off, starting at his head and working his way back to his tail. The Chancellor slings the sack over his shoulder and wanders the halls. He runs into Lunafreya near the kitchen.  
  
“I come bearing gifts,” he says smiling, raising the sack off of his shoulder slightly. “Where might your Lord Husband be? He won’t want to miss this.”  
  
“He’s around here somewhere,” she says. She crosses her arms and frowns at him. “You know, you had him worried sick, Ardyn. He’s been pacing up and down the halls since you left. Nearly drove poor Pryna up the wall.”  
  
“Is that so?” He grins. “And you, Lunafreya? Were _you_ worried sick as well?”  
  
Luna uncrosses her arms. She fidgets with her hands, lacing her fingers together. There is a fluttering feeling in her stomach; it makes it hard to look him in the eyes. “I was... _concerned_. But as I am connected to Pryna as Pryna is to Umbra, I knew from the start that you were safe.”  
  
Ardyn removes his hat and bows his head to her. “I thank you for your concern.”  
  
He pauses for a moment, gazing at Luna thoughtfully, then slides the sack off of his shoulder and pulls open the drawstring closure. He reaches in and pulls out a thick, heavy book. It appears to be quite old, if the yellowed pages are any indication, but in surprisingly good condition despite its age.  
  
Ardyn extends it towards Luna. “For you, my Lady. A rare tome, pilfered by yours truly from my old office in Zegnautus Keep.”  
  
She hesitates at first, but something in his expression -- a melancholy behind his eyes? -- convinces her to take the book from him. Although she grasps it with both hands, she still struggles slightly with the weight of the cumbersome volume.  
  
Lunafreya brushes off the leather cover and takes a look at the title: _Traditional Healing Methods of Solheim_. An intricate wildflower design is worked into the leather of the spine. She opens the book and flips carefully through the worn, faded pages, each one illuminated with detailed illustrations and diagrams. The book includes such useful entries as recipes for poultices, instructions for calling upon the Astrals to heal certain ailments, and remedies for things as varied as fever and poor circulation. As she scans the book, she realizes many of the words are in an archaic Lucian dialect she’s only encountered through religious texts.  
  
“Ardyn!” she gasps. “This is _incredible_! How old _is_ this book, exactly?”  
  
“Oh, I couldn’t rightly say. I picked it up some time ago and had been holding onto it for quite a long time since then. Centuries, at least.” He shrugs, as though this revelation _isn’t_ positively miraculous.  
  
“When Noctis mentioned that this realm mirrors the Living World, I couldn’t help but wonder if that _also_ meant that all of our _possessions_ were as we had left them. So I went to investigate, naturally.”  
  
“Thank you, truly.” Luna hugs the book tightly to her chest, as though afraid that it might dissolve into dust if she drops it. “Did you find what you sought?”  
  
He pulls an unopened bottle of vintage Altissian red from the cloth sack and smiles wickedly. “Oh, _yes_.”  
  
  
**IV.**

About a week after Ardyn’s excursion to Gralea, Noct is awakened from a nap by the sound of music echoing through the Citadel. It grows louder as he winds his way through the halls, passing the library and several meeting rooms. As he follows the melody down an elaborate spiral staircase, he finds himself at the entrance to the ballroom.  
  
Noctis leans against the entryway and looks in, observing quietly. He can’t help but smile at the scene playing out before him: Ardyn is sitting at the grand piano, playing the concerto that lured Noct downstairs. Meanwhile, Lunafreya is dancing a box step by herself, fluid and graceful as a flowing stream.  
  
Ardyn looks up from the keys, continuing to play as though Noct had not appeared. “Ah, Noctis. I see you’ve found us. Won’t you come in?”  
  
“I didn’t know you could play,” Noct says as he enters the ballroom, nodding to the piano.  
  
The Chancellor smirks. “It would seem our royal upbringings as Princes of Lucis were _vastly_ different, dear Noct. For me, it partly involved piano lessons starting at the age of five...and then, an _eternity_ to practice.”  
  
Noctis can see the remnants of bitterness in Ardyn’s expression, but is pretty sure this is the least sour he’s ever seen Ardyn when talking about his past. Maybe there’s hope for him yet.  
  
Luna shimmies over to Noct and succeeds in pulling him into her box step with only a minor misstep. It’s taken practice, but they’ve gotten much better at dancing together. There is a thrill he feels when their bodies move in harmony with one another, like they are of one mind, one spirit.  
  
As he holds her close, one arm around her waist and the other holding her hand, he feels the tingling at the base of his spine, the pulling feeling in his chest again. Noct’s heart clenches, remembering how he had the same feeling seeing Ardyn in the guest room.  
  
It's just... _two people at once_? He didn’t even know that was _possible_.  
  
Then again, he supposes he’s seen and done _stranger_ things in his life... _and_ afterlife.  
  
  
**I.  
  
** They decide to hold a banquet for themselves, because they are _bored_. It isn’t as though they actually _need_ to eat. It just seems like the sort of thing royalty _does_ when they have nothing else to do -- and they _are_ all three of them royalty, of varying sorts.  
  
Noctis conjures up several platefuls of various hors d'oeuvres and entrees and, of course, desserts. Grilled wild trevally, Crown City dumplings, horntooth meat pies, and Ignis’s attempt at Noct’s favorite Tenebraen pastry are but a few of the items on the menu.  
  
“Goodness,” Ardyn rubs his chin, looking out over the table, “I had heard tell of your _legendary_ loathing of vegetables, Noctis, but I must say...to see it in action is _truly_ another thing entirely. Is there a single green item amongst these plates?”  
  
Noct, leaning back in the King’s seat at the head of the table, shrugs nonchalantly. “Does it matter? Not like a balanced diet is gonna bring us back to life or anything.”  
  
Ardyn puts a hand to his chest in mock offense. “Why Noct! Nutrition _must_ be taken seriously at _all_ stages of life, _including_ one’s afterlife. Which is _of course_ why I saw to it to make certain we at least had _fruit_ represented here today -- if only in _liquid form_.” He gestures to the bottle of Altissian red in the center of the table.  
  
“Hey, if you’re _so worried_ about our health, then why don’t you go ahead and pour us all a round?” says Noctis, holding out his glass.  
  
Ardyn laughs at that and picks up the bottle. Playing the gentleman sommelier, he presents the label to Lunafreya for her inspection before uncorking it.  
  
Luna, in the Queen’s seat to Noct’s right, knows very little about wine vintages, but believes she can trust Ardyn’s judgment on this particular issue.  
  
“An excellent year, Chancellor,” she says with a smile, feigning confidence.  
  
“I am pleased you approve,” he replies, holding her gaze more intensely than is perhaps appropriate for the context. He uncorks the bottle with ease, using his strength and his deft fingers to pull and twist the cork out of the bottleneck. Luna finds herself suddenly thinking _obscene_ thoughts about those fingers, pulling and twisting _other_ things. She blushes fiercely as he fills her glass. He narrows his eyes, raises an eyebrow and smirks at her lasciviously, as though reading her mind.  
  
He couldn’t possibly _actually_ know what she’d been thinking...could he?  
  
As Ardyn finishes filling Noct’s glass and then his own, Luna clears her throat and stands.  
  
“I propose a toast,” she says, hoping her face doesn’t _look_ as hot as it _feels_. She raises her glass, and the men follow suit. “To _this_ life, and the connections we have made with one another. May they continue to grow as we do.”  
  
They drink to that, each quietly thinking of the last toast they made together, and recalling Ardyn’s impassioned words about the intertwining threads of their fates.  
  
  
**Outro in No Minor**

The banquet lasted long into the evening. Though Noctis had tried to replicate Ignis’s recipes as best as he could, it was clear that his memories paled in comparison to the refined culinary knowledge of his Crownsguard. In a few cases, whole ingredients were missing, and of course Ardyn teased Noctis mercilessly for those. (But honestly, _who forgets_ to put Leidan peppers in Crown City dumplings? They’re just _wrong_ if they’re not at least a _little_ spicy.)  
  
Luna and Noctis retire to the royal bedchamber, both feeling warm and just a bit woozy thanks to Ardyn’s wine. They get in bed and pull the covers up, both expecting to be able to drift away into slumber easily...and yet, after some time, both King and Queen find themselves still awake, staring uneasily at the ceiling.  
  
“Noctis,” Luna murmurs, “are you still awake?”  
  
“You’re up too?” he replies. “Thought maybe it was just me.”  
  
“How strange,” she says. “You don’t normally have trouble sleeping.”  
  
“Yeah,” he takes a deep breath. “I just...can’t stop thinking tonight, I guess.”  
  
“Me too.”  
  
They lay in silence together for a few moments. Then, as though they had choreographed it, they both sit up simultaneously, looking the other in the eyes, and the words spill out from both of them at the same time like water from a bursting dam.  
  
“There’s something I need to tell you--”  
  
Surprised, they stare at one another for half a second before Luna starts to laugh. Noctis smiles gently at her.  
  
“You can go first.” Luna gestures towards him, encouraging him to go ahead.  
  
Noctis scratches his head nervously. “Actually, do you think we could maybe...say it at the same again?”  
  
“Oh...Hm. Well, it might make it more difficult to hear what each of us is saying like that, but...would it make sharing easier for you?”  
  
He nods.  
  
“Alright then,” she reaches out, takes one of his hands and gives it a squeeze. “Here we go -- on three. One, two, three--”  
  
“I...think I feel something for Ardyn?” “I am sort of attracted to Ardyn…”  
  
The King and Queen sit quietly with one another, letting what’s been said settle between them like fog rolling into an open valley.  
  
“Well, _that_ was unexpected,” Luna says eventually.  
  
“Y-yeah, no kidding.” Noctis makes a noise that is either a rueful laugh or a sneeze -- Luna isn't quite sure. “I guess neither of us can be mad if we both feel the same way?”  
  
She folds her hands in her lap. “No, no I suppose not.”  
  
Noctis looks down, a forlorn expression on his face. “We’re...totally fucked, aren’t we.”  
  
Luna reaches out and strokes his cheeks affectionately, then lifts his chin. “We still love one another, do we not?” He nods. “Then we shall never be _totally_ fucked. I simply wonder how the man in _question_ might react.”  
  
“Should we tell him?” Noct ponders aloud.  
  
“I suppose that depends on what you and I decide we want to do about these feelings, yes?”  
  
Noct is glad he’s well-liquored, because that’s the only way he ever seems to feel even a little bit comfortable talking about matters of the heart. “Guess we’ll be up for a bit longer, huh?”  
  
In the guest room down the hall, Ardyn suddenly has the distinct feeling that someone is talking about him.  
  
Must be the wine.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Noctis Lucis Caelum is fairly certain he has never felt more awkward in his life. His hands are clammy, and his heart beats like a war drum in his chest.  
  
“Well, go on then, Noct,” Ardyn teases. “While we technically _do_ have all day, and though the sight of you squirming nervously is truly _delightful_ to behold...I can tell your wife does not share my joy in it.” He glances over and winks at Luna, who looks a bit anxious, her lips pursed tightly together.  
  
Noctis and Lunafreya stand silently in front of Ardyn in the library for nearly two full minutes -- the King uneasily shifting his weight back and forth from one foot to the other, his gaze sliding around the room -- before Noct finally works up the courage to say what he needs to say.  
  
“We uh...kind of like you,” Noct blurts suddenly. “Like... _like_ you, like you. You know?”  
  
Ardyn raises an eyebrow, cocking his head to one side. “Forgive me, my Noct-to-Common translator must be malfunctioning today.”  
  
Luna clears her throat. “It, um, seems we've both become a bit, well, _enamored_ of you.”  
  
“I _see_.” He leans back in his seat, rubbing his chin pensively. “Just for my clarification, you're telling me that you both -- separately and spontaneously, with no input or influence from the other -- _fell in love_ with me?”  
  
The King and Queen look at one another, then look back at the Chancellor. Lunafreya nods softly at Ardyn. Noctis shrugs, putting his hands in his pockets.  
  
“Just kinda happened,” says Noct, and Ardyn bursts into laughter.  
  
“Oh, _indeed_ ,” says Ardyn, smiling, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes. “My apologies, I don't mean to make light of your confession. ‘Tis only that I had the thought that the Astrals must be positively _shitting themselves_ about now...”  
  
He rises from his chair and looks down at the King and Queen, a look of playful amusement crossing his face. He reaches out and tips up their chins with his hands.  
  
“The gods aside -- I am flattered. Though this is not the first time a _very attractive_ married couple has professed their love for me, I _can_ say this is the first time said couple has been _royalty_.”  
  
The Chancellor wanders off towards a corner of the room, his hands behind his back. He stops to turn around once he reaches the wall, casually leaning against it with his arms crossed at his chest.  
  
“This...wouldn't be your _first time_ getting involved with a couple?” Luna asks, surprised.  
  
“Are you _asking me_ to get involved with you?” Ardyn grins, a roguish look in his eye.  
  
Her face turns beet-red. “We wouldn't ask you to do anything you're not comfortable with, of course…”  
  
“Oh, my dear Lunafreya, after over two thousand years of life, I have experienced most everything humans have come up with to entertain themselves. Nowhere is that more true than in matters of the heart...and in the bedroom.” He winks suggestively.  
  
“So...is that a yes?” asks Noct, confusion in his voice.  
  
“A yes to what? You've not asked me anything as of yet,” the Chancellor replies, holding his arms out and then placing them on his hips in faux impatience.  
  
Noctis sighs and rubs at his face. “Gods, Ardyn, you're such a _shit_. Why does everything have to be a game with you?” He grabs for his wife’s hand, “Come on, Luna. I told you this was a waste of t-”  
  
“Noctis.” Ardyn’s deep voice interrupts, commanding with but a single word. Noct immediately stops what he is doing and looks at the Chancellor. His expression is sullen. Noctis has seen that look on Ardyn’s face before -- sad and slightly hurt -- when the Chancellor revealed his true identity to him at Zegnautus Keep.  
  
“This is no game, Noct. You need only ask openly for what you want, and _perhaps_ you shall receive it.”  
  
Noctis opens his mouth to speak, comes up mute, and shuts his mouth again, looking down at his feet.  
  
“What I think Noctis is trying to say is--” Luna starts.  
  
“Now, now, my Lady,” Ardyn interrupts, raising a hand to cut her off, “I am _very_ well aware that _you_ can voice your emotions and your wants. What I would _like_ to know is if your Lord Husband can _also_ do so on his own. Let's give him a chance, shall we?”  
  
The King flashes him a look of irritation that could have killed an Astral on the spot. _Feelings_! _Why_ did it _always_ have to be _talking_ about _feelings_?  
  
“Look, I don't really understand it myself, okay? Half the time, I still want to kick your ass across the Beyond.”  
  
“And the other half?” Ardyn presses.  
  
“The other half…” Noct hesitates. “The other half of the time, I feel a tugging in my chest, like you've got a hook in my heart and you've been trying to reel me in for _weeks_.”  
  
“Mm, an apt metaphor, my dear angler,” Ardyn laughs softly. He crosses the room to stand before them once more, dramatic as always. “Now then, what is it you wish of me?”  
  
Noct takes a deep breath and lets it out in one swift, exasperated blast of air. “Will you...be with us? Like, _romantically_?”  
  
“Oh, _Noct_ ,” Ardyn purrs as he snakes an arm around each of their waists. “I thought you’d _never_ ask.”


	3. Chapter 3

Noct tries not to think about the fact that in over two thousand years of life, Ardyn must have had hundreds of partners. How could he _not_ \-- as handsome, charismatic, and _powerful_ as Ardyn was? He just hopes that maybe he won't be the _worst_ lover Ardyn’s ever had.  
  
He thinks this as he is walking into the courtyard, and then stops abruptly as he looks up to find Ardyn sitting on the stone throne with Lunafreya in his lap. The Chancellor has one arm wrapped around her waist to keep her from falling, and the other is firmly gripping her thigh. Luna’s hands, meanwhile, are entangled in Ardyn’s long tresses, her legs splayed on either arm of the throne.  
  
Noct feels a roiling nausea in his gut -- this is the first time they’ve kissed in front of him, and the thought of _sharing_ still feels strange. So strange, in fact, that the hair on his neck stands on end. His heart suddenly starts to race, the beats echoing in his head. But the weirdest thing is the sensation of _electricity_ in his veins, and the fact that when he opens his hand, he finds the hilt of his Engine Blade there, waiting for him. Huh. He grips it firmly and walks forward.  
  
They are oblivious to Noct advancing behind them. It feels wrong, it all feels _wrong_ \-- he can’t tell if he’s more upset about Ardyn kissing Luna or Luna kissing Ardyn, or maybe it’s just the fact that _neither_ of _them_ are kissing _him_ , all he knows is that he _needs_ it to _stop_ \--  
  
Noct rears up with his blade and brings it down on the lovers -- _his_ lovers --  
  
\-- and wakes up alone in the royal bedchamber. He’s kicked off his sheets and is near to having kicked himself out of bed along with them. He looks down at his hands. _Of course it was a dream._ It’s been a long time since he last laid hands on the _real_ Engine Blade. A chill runs up his spine as he recalls the feeling of the shortsword cutting through the air. And he would _never_...  
  
Noctis sighs as he maneuvers himself to the edge of the bed, putting his feet flat on the floor. He can’t deny that he’s felt a little insecure the past few weeks, ever since he and Luna made their confession, and Ardyn accepted their... _proposition_. But he also felt that things hadn’t changed _that_ much between them, honestly. Ardyn had always flirted with them, even _before_ he’d been dating them. So why does he feel so _weird_ about all this?  
  
He gets up from the bed and shuffles over to his wardrobe, where he pulls on a shirt and pants. After giving his long hair a quick comb-through with his fingers, he decides he looks presentable enough. If his dreams want him to go to the courtyard, then _fine_. He’ll go to the godsdamned courtyard.  
  
As Noct makes his way down the hall, the quality of the light begins to shift from the warm electric torchlight of the Citadel interior to the cooler tones from the overcast skies above the courtyard. He feels an eerie sense of deja vu and opens and closes his hand, half-expecting a weapon to appear. He’s relieved when nothing happens.  
  
Standing on the threshold of the courtyard, at first Noct isn’t sure that Luna and Ardyn are even present. The only sounds are the rushing of the soft breeze and the occasional artificial bird chirp. But as his eyes adjust to the bright sunlight, two figures come into focus, sitting quietly at one of the circular stone tables along the perimeter of the courtyard. A large, thick tome is laid open between the two of them. Curious, Noct leans against the doorway and continues to watch the scene from afar.  
  
Ardyn pushes a pair of half-moon glasses further up the bridge of his nose as he and Luna pore over the page before them. Luna is reading aloud from the text, following the words with her finger. Ardyn nods along as she speaks, looking every bit like a serious teacher evaluating his best student. She pauses in the middle of reading, holding her place with the tip of her finger, and looks up to ask him something. Ardyn’s eyes light up in response -- this was clearly an insightful question. He shifts the book a little closer to himself and flips forward several pages, then pushes it back towards Luna, tapping a spot at the bottom right corner of the right page. Noct can see her eyes go wide as the gears click into place. Ardyn smiles at her, almost _proudly_ , and Noct can’t help but smile along too.  
  
Ardyn leans back to stretch his long arms, catching sight of Noctis at the door as he does. The Chancellor gives him a questioning look.  
  
“Ah, Noct,” he calls out, taking off the glasses and placing them on the table. “My, how the tables have _turned_ since the days when _I_ was the one stalking _you_ , hmm? Have you been standing there long?”  
  
Luna turns around in her seat. “Noctis! What are you doing brooding in the doorway? Come sit with us, darling.”  
  
Noct crosses the courtyard and pulls over a chair from the table adjacent to theirs and parks it backwards. Why did they sit so far from the entrance, anyway? Then, looking around, he realizes -- this table has the best view of the fountain in the center of the courtyard, a carved sculpture of a _very_ curvaceous Glacian holding an urn of overflowing water. He sits down, placing his arms atop the chair back and resting his head on them, idly wondering if Ardyn or Luna had chosen the table with the, ahem, _view_.  
  
“So,” says Noctis, “whatcha guys reading?”  
  
“Oh!” Luna titters excitedly, “This is the tome Ardyn brought back from Gralea. It was compiled in the early Lucian era, so it includes a number of holistic remedies heretofore lost in our…” She pauses, looking at her husband curiously. “Noctis, what’s wrong?”  
  
“Hm?” His eyebrows perk up. He...didn’t _think_ he’d spaced out or anything…  
  
Luna frowns at him. “Your eyes look sad. Don’t his eyes look sad, Ardyn?”  
  
Ardyn grins. “Lunafreya, my dear, there is some part of him that _always_ looks sad, is this not so?”  
  
“ _Honestly_ , you,” she says, reaching across the table to give Ardyn a light smack. “If there’s something bothering you, Noctis, you should be able to tell us. We’re here for you -- even if _some of us_ don’t seem like we are.” She looks pointedly at Ardyn, who looks off towards the fountain, feigning innocence.  
  
Noct sighs and buries his face into his arms. “It’s...it’s stupid. I shouldn’t bother you with it.”  
  
“Now, now -- none of that,” Ardyn says. “Remember, at the outset of our arrangement, I asked for you to be open with your emotions. Here is your chance.”

Noctis groans audibly. He stands up from his chair, puts a hand to his forehead like he has a terrible headache, and begins to pace up and back in front of the table.  
  
“I...had this dream. That the two of you were...y’know. _Together_. And in the dream, I was really mad about it. I could use the Armiger again. And I...I _did_.” He brings the hand from his forehead down to his mouth, chews a bit on his thumb. “The shock of it woke me up. But I don’t know why I was so upset? I mean...I agreed to this, didn’t I? Because I lo--” He tries to say _The Word_ but it refuses to leave his tongue. “Because I...I _feel_ this way, about both of you.”  
  
Ardyn and Lunafreya share a glance. At first, Noctis hangs his head, sure that he’s offended them. He resists the urge to either run away, or curl into a ball, or _both_. Curl into a ball and _roll_ away, maybe?  
  
He has to admit that he is a bit unnerved when Ardyn begins to _laugh_.  
  
“Why, _Noct_ ,” says the Chancellor, “are you feeling _jealous_?”  
  
Noctis furrows his brow. Is that all this is? _Jealousy_?  
  
Lunafreya stands up from her seat and takes his hands in hers. “Would it help if we made more of an effort to include you?”  
  
He thinks about his dream, about the feelings of anger, hurt, and _loneliness_ that burned like hot coals in the pit of his dream-stomach. This is all so _new_ to him, how would he know what would help him feel better?  
  
The scraping of wooden chair legs against the courtyard floor brings Noct back to attention. As he looks up, he sees Ardyn lean over to whisper something to Luna, hidden behind his hand. Still holding Noct’s hands, she turns her head to Ardyn and gives him a _saucy_ look -- lips curved up into a half-smile, eyes narrowed, one eyebrow raised curiously. She nods to him, and he moves out of Noct’s field of vision. Noct starts to turn around to see where Ardyn is going, but Luna reaches up and cups his face with her hand, guiding him to look at her.  
  
A moment later, Noct feels Ardyn just behind him, grasping his hips with his large hands. He speaks close to Noct’s ear, the warmth of his breath and the sultry drawl of his voice sending a shiver up Noct’s spine.  
  
“If you feel we’ve been neglectful, Noct, it could _certainly_ be arranged for more _attention_ to be paid to you.”  
  
Lunafreya puts her arms around his neck and kisses him sweetly. Instead of pulling away, she rests her forehead against his. “Do you want this?” she whispers to him. “Do you want _us_?”  
  
Noctis looks into Luna’s eyes and pauses for only a moment before using one arm to pull her towards him and into another kiss. With his other arm, he grabs hold of Ardyn’s hand. One moment, they are in the courtyard, and in the next blink of an eye he’s brought them all to the royal bedchamber.  
  
The next steps happen quick as a blur. Luna pulls off Noct’s shirt and caresses his chest, tracing his collarbones and down his sternum. Meanwhile, Ardyn is kissing -- no, not just kissing, but _nipping_ the back of his neck, one hand tight on Noct’s hip, and the other sneaking its way around and into the waistband of Noct’s pants. Noctis sucks in a sharp breath as Ardyn’s fingers just barely graze the sensitive skin of his prick. Luna covers his mouth with hers, and Noctis finds himself moaning into her kisses as Ardyn takes him firmly in hand and begins to stroke.  
  
As Ardyn’s rhythm grows faster, Noct closes his eyes and unconsciously leans back into Ardyn, who smiles and winks at Luna.  
  
“You certainly do seem to be _enjoying yourself_ ,” says Ardyn, his hand wrist-deep in Noct’s pants. “But I want you to _beg_ us to let you come…”  
  
Noct can barely _think_ through the sensations, everything is _so much_ at once, and Ardyn’s strokes are getting _faster_ , and Noct is _so close_ \-- but then, Ardyn abruptly stops what he’s doing. He laughs a little as Noct groans. Luna kisses the tip of his nose in sympathy.  
  
“ _Beg_ for your release, Noctis,” Ardyn says from behind him.  
  
He’s never been one to beg, but the need is too strong.  
  
“ _Please_ ,” he says plaintively.  
  
“Hmm? Please what?” Ardyn lightly drags a finger up the center of his shaft while Luna plants kisses along his collarbone.  
  
“ _Gods_ , could you just…--” he makes a mewling noise of frustration, “-- _please_ , make me come?”  
  
Ardyn gives a half-chuckle, “Oh, _Noct_ , we’d be _delighted_ to -- wouldn’t we, Lunafreya?”  
  
Luna smiles radiantly at him. The moon of his sky, as always. “Of _course_ we would!”  
  
Noct moans deeply as Ardyn starts up his rhythm again, but this time Lunafreya also dips a hand into his pants. Bypassing his cock, she begins to fondle his balls, softly caressing them the way she knows he likes it. Just one or the other would have been enough to send him over the edge, but both feelings together is nigh overwhelming. Noct begins to pump his hips into Ardyn’s hand, _harder_ , _faster_ , ‘til he comes gasping, gripping Luna’s shoulders, seeing white before his eyes.  
  
Ardyn gives Noct one last, long rub as he pulls his hand from Noct’s waistband, leaving him quivering slightly.  
  
“Well! Now that you’ve had some fun of your own...It’s _awfully_ rude to leave your lady going this long without any pleasure for herself -- don’t you agree, Noct?”  
  
“Oh...uh, right,” Noct manages to say as he pulls himself together.  
  
“Really, it should always be _ladies first_ when it comes to the bedroom, but this _was_ a bit of a _special_ situation, wasn’t it.” Ardyn looks slyly at Luna.  
  
Lunafreya shrugs, grinning. “We all make sacrifices for the greater good.”  
  
Noct raises an eyebrow at her, but Ardyn laughs heartily.  
  
Noctis clears his throat and refocuses his attention on Luna. He reaches behind her and unzips her dress partway -- she unzips the other part and discards the dress, though she keeps her white heels on, to Noct’s sincere delight. She squeals as he swoops in and picks her up as though about to carry her over the threshold of their first home, then lays her gently on the bed. Ardyn gets into the bed behind her and props himself up against the headboard, his legs sprawled. He reaches for her hands and gently urges her to scoot back towards him, until her head is leaning against his chest.  
  
Noctis sheds his pants and climbs into the bed, in between her legs. He starts by kissing her, then raises his head and kisses Ardyn. He realizes this is the first time he’s kissed the Chancellor, and fleetingly he wonders now, _again_ , how he measures up with those hypothetical hundreds of other partners. _Astrals almighty_ , though! The contrast in Ardyn and Luna’s tastes and scents alone -- Luna’s light and floral, Ardyn’s deep and earthy, like sampling two ends of the same spectrum -- is enough to leave Noct dizzy.  
  
Ardyn does the honors of undoing and removing Luna’s bra as Noct begins to kiss a trail down her body. While Noct focuses his attention on one breast, Ardyn makes sure the other is well attended to, rolling the nipple gently between his fingers. ( _Much_ more gently than he had treated the cork on the bottle of Altissian red, Luna notes.) Luna shows her appreciation in soft moans, escaping her lips in _ohh_ s and _mm_ s. As Noct moves lower and lower, she tangles her fingers in his hair with one hand, and holds on to one of Ardyn’s legs with the other. Noct kisses all the way down to her silk panties. Rather than immediately sliding them off, he uses a finger to softly tease her.  
  
“ _Gods_ , Noctis,” she gasps after a few moments, “ _More_.”  
  
“You heard the lady,” Ardyn chuckles.  
  
Noctis slips Luna’s panties off and tosses them to the side, then goes to work. He slides a finger between her wet lips and inserts it, and then another, inside. He bends closer and lets his tongue set the pace, licking her pearl in languorous circles while his fingers pump a slow, gentle rhythm. Meanwhile, Ardyn continues massaging her breasts, his thumbs playfully grazing over her nipples. Occasionally, he turns her head up to his and leans down to kiss her.  
  
It doesn’t take much of this for her breathing to start becoming more ragged.  
  
“My _goodness_ , Lunafreya, if you could only see your face,” Ardyn murmurs to her, running a finger under her chin. “Your cheeks are growing rosy as the dawn sky. Simply _stunning_.”  
  
That pushes her over the edge -- she unintentionally yanks on Noct’s hair as she climaxes, moaning loud enough to make Noct glad they’re currently the only occupants of the Citadel. When she releases her hold on him, he sits up and grins at her, pleased with himself.  
  
Luna returns the smile, breathing heavily. “Gentlemen...you spoil me. Truly, service fit for a queen...” She melts further into Ardyn’s arms.  
  
After a few moments, she looks up at Ardyn with a confused expression and gives his shirt collar a tug. “Ardyn...why on _Eos_ are you still wearing all those clothes? This simply won't do. Noctis, come help, won’t you?”  
  
The King and Queen set themselves to stripping Ardyn of his outfit, divesting him of his orange scarf and his pleated shirt, his trousers and boots. Beneath all the layers, they find a lean, toned man, broad of shoulder, with a few scars dotting his skin here and there.  
  
“Why, Chancellor, you are _quite_ the handsome devil,” Lunafreya comments, taking in the sight of him as he stands beside the bed.  
  
Ardyn flips his ruddy hair dramatically. “And just _imagine_ , you have me for the rest of eternity,” he laughs softly, “Aren't you _lucky_.”  
  
“Glad to see your dick really _is_ as big as your ego,” Noct, says, half under his breath. “I kinda wondered if it measured up.”  
  
Ardyn snorts. “You only _‘kinda’_ wondered? Oh, _Noct_. Don’t think I didn’t see you _sneaking glances_ at me these many months. Now tell me,” he moves closer to Noctis, cups the King’s face with his hands, “is there anything _else_ you’ve wondered about this body of mine?”  
  
Ardyn lets a hand stray to Noct’s backside. He uses it as a grip to pull Noct against him. “Have you wondered, for example, how _that_ might feel?”  
  
Noct shivers at the sensation of Ardyn’s warm skin against his.  
  
“Or, perhaps, _this_?”  
  
The Chancellor parts Noct’s lips with his tongue, leading him into a kiss that threatens to leave them both breathless. He bites Noct’s lower lip like he’s marking his territory as he pulls away. Noct moans softly despite himself, and Ardyn grins, satisfied.  
  
“How is all this for _attention_ , Noct? Do you need _more_?” Ardyn asks. He gives Noct’s rear end a tentative slap.  
  
Noct jumps a little at the unexpected jolt, and he realizes with a start that he’s _hard_ again. “ _Fuck_ \--”  
  
Ardyn slaps his ass again -- this time a little harder, a little more _certain_. “I _asked_ you a question, Noct. It’s _quite_ _impolite_ not to answer. I shall ask you again -- _do_ try to answer promptly this time. Do you need _more_ , Noctis?”  
  
This time, as Noct opens his mouth to respond, Ardyn reaches down and lets his finger delicately circle the head of Noct’s hard-on.  
  
“ _Yes_ ,” Noct hisses from between clenched teeth.  
  
Ardyn’s lips curl into a smirk. He pokes Noctis square in the sternum with his index finger and pushes him backwards, walking him back towards the bed. When Noct’s calves bump up against the mattress, Ardyn takes him by the shoulders, squeezing them a little harder than is probably strictly necessary, but Noct finds the firm touch grounding, even comforting, somehow. Ardyn turns Noctis around so he’s facing the bed, where he finds Luna snuggled against the pillows, her blonde hair cascading over her shoulders.  
  
For a moment, Noct is concerned that maybe she feels left out -- or worse, _bored_ \-- but then his eyes follow the curve of Luna’s arm down to her hand. She is rubbing figure-eights against her clit, looking at him with her eyes full of lust. Was she... _getting off_ to him fooling around with Ardyn? _Gods_ , that was surprisingly hot. Just the thought of it was getting him even harder than he already was.  
  
Ardyn leans down to whisper in Noct’s ear as he watches her. “How do you think it would _feel_ , dear Noct, if _I_ fucked _you_ , while _you_ fucked _her_?” Noct shudders as Ardyn licks the sensitive edge of his earlobe. “Would you like to find out?”  
  
Noctis swallows hard. “Sounds...pretty acrobatic. Take it you know what to do?”  
  
“Oh, _Noct_ ,” Ardyn laughs softly in his ear. A bolt of hot desire shoots up his spine in response. “Never you fear. Did you know that _orgies_ were once a method of _Astral worship_ among some groups in Lucis? ‘Tis true.”  
  
Noct can almost feel Ardyn grinning behind him. In fact, Ardyn _must_ have done _something_ behind his back, because Luna stops pleasuring herself, gives him a wink over Noct’s head, then rolls over to the far side of the bed. She opens the drawer of their nightstand and pulls out a small glass bottle. Like the bottle of wine Noctis had conjured so many months ago, the little bottle of lube _also_ miraculously refilled when emptied. The Beyond works in mysterious ways.  
  
Luna holds it up, smiling. She bounces back to the center of the bed, bottle in hand. With her other hand, she reaches out for Noctis, inviting him to join her. Every time she gestures to him this way, there is an echo in Noct’s memory, of another time she reached out for him. Back then, he wasn’t able to join her -- it wasn’t his time to go. But here, now, together in the Beyond for eternity, all he has to do is take her hand. He does so, entwining his fingers with hers, and marvels as he always does at how soft her hands are. He lets her pull him onto the bed, further into the middle. Luna drops the bottle and drapes her arms around his neck, smiling at him expectantly. Noct reaches up and cups her face in his hands, pulling her into a slow, deep kiss.  
  
Noctis looks back over his shoulder at Ardyn, who is watching them intently with a wolfish grin, looking every bit like he might pounce on them at any moment. But Noct knows what he has to do. Just as Luna had invited him, Noct shifts his body a little to extend his hand in invitation to Ardyn.  
  
Ardyn’s grin becomes a genuine smile. “And here I thought perhaps I had been forgotten once more.”  
  
Noct rolls his eyes and re-extends his hand. “Don’t make me regret all this, Ardyn.”  
  
Ardyn takes Noct’s hand and slides into the bed beside him. “Only kidding, dear.” He kisses Noct, then leans forward to kiss Luna, who accepts with a quiet giggle.  
  
Luna picks up the bottle of lube and passes it to Ardyn. “We leave it in your hands, love.”  
  
He puts a hand to his chest in mock surprise. “Why, Lunafreya. I’m honored.”  
  
At first, they’re a bit clumsy with one another, trying to determine where limbs should go, and how their bodies fit together. As to be expected of any new lovers. But after a few moments, they find a configuration that feels right -- lying horizontally, with Luna facing Noctis, and Ardyn behind him.  
  
“Mm, my favorite -- a Noctis sandwich,” Luna teases, giggling.  
  
Noct is about to attempt to make a joke back at her but instead inhales sharply as Ardyn does him the favor of lubing him up, inserting one slick finger, then another. It’s desperately hard for him to concentrate on Luna while Ardyn is sliding fingers in and out of his ass. It feels so _good_ , and he can’t keep himself from moaning now and then.  
  
He reaches down between Luna’s legs. “Gods, Luna -- _ohh_ \--” he interrupts himself with another moan, “-- you’re so _wet_.”  
  
She looks at him like he has stars in his eyes. She wiggles herself into position, taking his cock with her hand and pressing it against her entrance. It takes every last ounce of his willpower not to just _take her_ right then, but Noct steels himself. He wants to wait for Ardyn.  
  
Luckily, he doesn’t have to wait long, as a few seconds later Ardyn removes his fingers. Ardyn moves Noct’s leg into a better position and lubes up his own cock.  
  
“No turning back from here, dears. Are you ready, Lunafreya?”  
  
“I don’t think there is anything I want more in the entire universe right now than this,” Luna replies as she brushes the hair from Noct’s face.  
  
“I have no doubt of that, my dear. I assure you I feel the same. And you, Noc-”  
  
“ _Bahamut’s balls_ , Ardyn...will you _please_ _shut up_ and _fuck me already_?” Noctis says impatiently.  
  
Ardyn bursts into laughter. “No need to bring _his_ balls into this, Noct -- ours will suffice! Well then… _as His Majesty commands_.”  
  
Noct feels Ardyn push into him, setting his nerves on fire. A deep groan escapes his throat. Rather than thrusting himself into Luna, she pushes herself down onto him. Nerves Noctis didn’t even know he _had_ begin to light up. As Noct instinctively starts to thrust, Ardyn grasps his hips to keep him steady. The two men eventually fall into their own rhythm together -- Ardyn grinding into Noct, Noct grinding into Luna, like the pistons of an engine. Luna finds her own counter-rhythm, reaching between her legs to massage her clit. Ardyn leaves love-bites on Noct’s shoulders, Luna kisses Noct as she moans, and Noct…  
  
Well, Noct begins to understand why the ancient Lucians worshipped the gods like this.  
  
It’s not like he’s never had sex before. Luna wasn’t even his first. (Prompto had that honor.) But there is something almost spiritual about _this_. Is it because it’s the three of them, specifically, and their connection to the gods? The Oracle, the King of Light, and the Fallen Son of Lucis, like the Moon, Stars, and Sun joined together in cosmic harmony? Something deep inside Noctis feels made whole by this act, as though they had always been three parts waiting to be put back together...  
  
Luna is the first to go. She digs the nails of her unoccupied hand into Noct’s back and unleashes a string of profanities Noct didn’t even realize she knew. He feels her muscles clamp down as she loses herself, and the extra sensation combined with the feeling of his own strokes plus the pleasure Ardyn is giving him causes a chain reaction he can’t stop. If his earlier orgasm felt like a single barrel of gasoline exploding, this was like _an entire gas station_ going up in flames. He buries his face in the crook of Luna’s neck as he comes right after her, tears welling up at the corners of his eyes from the intensity of it all. But Ardyn’s not done with him yet.  
  
While Noct continues getting fucked, Luna disentangles herself briefly from him to lay beside Ardyn, pushing his ruddy hair back from his neck and leaving kisses along his jawline. Realizing Noct is no longer encumbered by her, Ardyn sits up, rolls Noct onto his stomach, and continues riding him from a more _conventional_ position. Luna rubs Ardyn’s back, and he leans over to kiss her in thanks. Sweat begins to bead on his brow. He puts a hand on Noct’s back, pinning him to the bed. Noct continues to moan as Ardyn pounds him into the mattress, while Ardyn himself begins to _growl_ as he picks up speed. It isn’t long before Ardyn gasps, then groans, and then he, too, digs his fingers into Noct’s back as he comes, his eyes half-lidded with satiated lust.  
  
Spent -- out of breath, sweaty, and _hot_ \-- the three lovers flop into the bed. Lunafreya wriggles in between Noctis and Ardyn.  
  
“Wasn’t that fun?” Luna says smiling. She takes their hands in hers. “Maybe next time, the two of _you_ will do _me_ , hmm?”  
  
Noct and Ardyn share a glance -- Noct looks mildly scandalized, but Ardyn smirks, positively _delighted_ by the thought.  
  
“Um,” Noct starts, “I...might need some time to work up to _sharing you_ like that.”  
  
Ardyn laughs slightly. “Fortunately for you, dear Noct, we have _all_ the time in the world, and _then some_.”  
  
Lunafreya squeezes their hands, lays them across her chest, and is asleep within moments.  
  
Noct makes eye contact with Ardyn, and for a moment the world is just the two of them. So much has passed between them, and yet here they are. And for once, it seems, neither of them feels the urge to say anything to the other -- not even Ardyn. Maybe it’s because they don’t want to wake Luna...or perhaps it’s because not everything needs to be said in words.  
  
Ardyn gives him a sly grin, as though thinking of a joke he hasn’t given Noct the punchline to just yet. He settles in beside Luna and a few minutes later Noctis can hear him snoring lightly. Unable to sleep, Noct watches his beloveds doze, and feels a warmth inside seeing them beside each other. Having them both, being together with them, he feels happy -- fulfilled -- in a way he can’t fully explain. He just knows that he’s better with both of them. What he knows now is that he just needs to be reminded sometimes that _they both_ want him, too.  
  
Noct realizes there is one thing he does need to say in words. Something he hasn’t been able to _properly_ say. He whispers it as quietly as he can -- both so he doesn’t wake his sleeping lovers, and because it feels less scary to speak aloud if he just says it softly:  
  
_“I love you._ ”


End file.
